Stocks indecisive ahead of results
CNN - 1 hour ago
NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Techs dipped and the broader market struggled near midday Monday as investors mulled a report showing a jump in Chinese exports, considered a weaker dollar and geared up for the start of the quarterly reporting period. The Dow Jones industrial average () was barely changed nearly 2-1/2 hours into the session.
Stocks zigzag ahead of Alcoa earnings report Chicago Tribune
Citigroup's U.S. consumer bank chief steps down
Reuters - 43 minutes ago
NEW YORK/CHARLOTTE, North Carolina (Reuters) - Citigroup Inc ( C.N ) said on Monday that Teresa "Terri" Dial was stepping down as head of its North American consumer bank, just months after an outside review reportedly questioned her management skills.
Another Citi shakeup: Terri Dial's out CNN
U.S. government kicks off Detroit auto show
MarketWatch - 14 minutes ago
DETROIT (MarketWatch) -- The U.S. government, a deep-pocketed investor in the car business these days, made its presence known early at the 2010 North American International Auto Show in Detroit on Monday. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood, much like a man with skin in the car game, delivered the first rah-rah presentation of the day while Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi is slated to close Monday's showcase on the main stage.
Ford Fusion Hybrid wins Car of the Year CNN
White House Considers Bank Fees
Wall Street Journal - 1 hour ago
Gasoline prices zip toward $3 mark
Denver Post - 1 hour ago
Cuomo Demands Bonus Data From 8 Big Banks
New York Times - 24 minutes ago
Hoeven Plans Bid for N.D. Senate Seat
New York Times - 25 minutes ago
U.K. LibDems Lay Out Election Plan
Wall Street Journal - 4 hours ago

United confirm plan to raise ??500m through bonds
ESPN - 6 hours ago
Manchester United confirmed on Monday they will look to raise ?500 million through bonds to restructure their debts. The Premier League champions have been struggling under interest payments due on the debts which the Glazers ran up when borrowing in order to purchase the club.
Manchester United aim to raise ?500m in bond sale in bid to reduce mounting debt UK Telegraph
The New Bond Bubble
SmartMoney - 7 hours ago
Christopher Van Slyke has an unusual dilemma for a financial planner: He won’t sell the investment many of his prospective customers now want to buy. About a year ago, he started getting a stream of potential clients coming into his Los Angeles office wanting “risk-free” portfolios stuffed with bonds.
Hedge Fund Strategies, at Smaller Prices New York Times
Chinese financials lead Asia higher
MarketWatch - 7 hours ago
HONG KONG (MarketWatch) -- Asian stock markets ended mostly higher Monday, with Shanghai equities lifted by brokerages after China's cabinet approved market-reform measures such as the launch of index futures and short-selling. Most other regional markets also gained, with a sharp increase in commodity prices spurring resource stocks.
Australian Gold Stocks Up Wall Street Journal

Ecclestone and Genii Said to Seek Cash For Saab Bid
New York Times - 6 hours ago
supremo Bernie Ecclestone and investment company Genii Capital will soon have initial financing to show that they can fund a purchase of carmaker , Dagens Industri reported. The newspaper said Mr. Ecclestone and Genii would have 500 million to 1 billion crowns ($90-$180 million) in an account in a couple of days.
Ecclestone, Genii gather cash for Saab bid: report Reuters
The Slow Unraveling Of The Dodd Mystique
Chicago Tribune - 1 day ago
After living a charmed political life for more than 30 years, Sen. Christopher Dodd collided with 's maxim that "behind every cloud is another cloud." Dodd managed the rare trick of turning some isolated storms into a deluge that forced him to abandon his race for re-election.
The Slow Unraveling Of The Dodd Mystique Chicago Tribune
Venture Defaults on Stuyvesant Town
Wall Street Journal - 2 days ago
Tishman Speyer and Inc. said Friday that they wouldn't make a full scheduled debt payment to senior lenders on Stuyvesant Town and Peter Cooper Village, triggering default and leaving one of New York's largest apartment complexes in limbo. The joint venture "has been engaged in discussions with CWCapital, the special servicer acting on behalf of the lenders, and hopes to continue good-faith negotiations toward a potential restructuring of the debt," the venture said in a statement.
NYC Stuyvesant Town complex misses payment Reuters

Japan Said to Distance JAL From Delta and American
New York Times - 6 hours ago
Delta Air Lines and will not be invited to invest in Japan Airlines until after a new management has been put in place, if ever, Reuters reported, citing a person familiar with the matter. The government has sounded out Kazuo Inamori, the 77-year-old honorary chairman of electronics components maker , about becoming JAL’s new chief executive officer and overseeing its restructuring, the report added.
Japan fund leaning towards JAL delisting - source Reuters
Arabtec's Aabar Deal May Signal Looming Losses
New York Times - 7 hours ago
Arabtec Holding , based in Dubai, may need a $1.7 billion investment by Abu Dhabi’s Aabar Investments to cope with future losses, analysts said on Sunday, as the construction company’s shares fell 6.9 percent. On Friday, investment firm Aabar, 71 percent owned by the U.A.E. federal government, offered to buy a 70 percent stake in Arabtec through a convertible bond at 2.3 dirhams per share, in a deal valued at $1.7 billion.
Arabtec's Aabar deal may signal looming losses Reuters
How would a new health insurance pool work?
Los Angeles Times - 9 hours ago
Reporting from Washington - I hear the healthcare bill will create an immediate insurance pool for people who can't get insurance. Both the House and Senate bills would provide $5 billion to create a temporary insurance pool until an insurance exchange is up and running.
The Health Choices Czar Wall Street Journal

Stephen Moore: The New Year Brings Tax Chaos
Wall Street Journal - 3 days ago
When the clock hit midnight on Jan. 1, some 70 new taxes on the middle class and small businesses went into effect, thanks to Congress's failure to prevent the expiration of popular and economically vital tax breaks on time. So some 25 million middle class Americans are now slated to get hit with the alternative minimum tax (AMT) this year.
The Federal Estate Tax Is Dead: Now What? (The Tax Guy) SmartMoney

China market reform may end Shanghai-HK price gap
MarketWatch - 11 hours ago
HONG KONG (MarketWatch) -- Beijing's approval of stock-index futures and additional reforms designed bring its markets into line with other major bourses should help shrink the valuation gap that has kept yuan-denominated shares at a premium to similar shares listed in Hong Kong, analysts said. China's State Council approved Friday the launch of stock-index futures and a trial program for short selling and margin trading -- the purchase of stock using brokerage loans.
In Hong Kong, Mollycoddling Over Rusal IPO Wall Street Journal
Commentary: Mollycoddling Over Rusal IPO
Wall Street Journal - 14 hours ago
A share offering under way in Hong Kong might be dubbed the rich man's IPO. UC Rusal, the Russian aluminum producer, plans to raise as much as $2.59 billion by issuing shares in Hong Kong, but none of it will come from local individual investors, securities regulators have ruled.
Craig Stephen's This Week in China: Bubble or not, Hong Kong draws IPOs MarketWatch
Goldman Looks to Crash ETF Party
Wall Street Journal - 17 hours ago
Belatedly, Goldman Sachs Group wants to join the exchange-traded-funds party. The Wall Street bank, which already has a prominent ETF trading desk, has filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission for permission to launch a slate of these funds.
Employment Report Leaves ETFs in the Black (Daily ETF Wrap-Up) SmartMoney

Debt Plan in Argentina Sets Bank Against the President
New York Times - 14 hours ago
RIO DE JANEIRO — A disputed plan by President Cristina Fern?ndez de Kirchner of to use billions of dollars in foreign currency reserves to repay debt has inflamed political tensions in that country, Latin America’s third-largest economy. Mrs. Kirchner’s cash-poor government is seeking to use $6.5 billion of Argentina’s nearly $48 billion in central bank reserves to help cover $13 billion in international debt that is due this year.
Argentine Leader in Decisive Battle Wall Street Journal
Bank CEOs to answer for financial crisis
CNN - 2 days ago
WASHINGTON (CNNMoney.com) -- As lawmakers start trickling back to Washington next week, a panel tasked with investigating the financial crisis is set to make its first big splash. The Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission, a 10-member panel appointed last summer by Congress, will hold public hearings on Wednesday and Thursday.
Top Bankers to Testify Next Week Wall Street Journal
Virgin Money primed for assault on UK banking market after Church House deal
UK Telegraph - 2 days ago
Virgin Money, led by chief executive Jayne Anne Gadhia, is paying ?12.3m for the business and investing a further ?37.3m in capital to support its growth. Ms Gadhia shot to prominence in 2007 by bidding for Northern Rock before it was nationalised.
Sir Richard Branson's move for Church allows him to preach his banking credentials UK Telegraph

Investors may feel relief but no joy in 2009 market recovery
Los Angeles Times - 1 day ago
Jose Motolinia cleans up after the close of trading on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange on Dec. 31, 2009. For mutual fund investors, a year of harrowing losses in 2008 gave way to a year of spectacular recovery in 2009.
Expand Your Investment Frontiers Wall Street Journal
Nervous Venezuelans buy TVs after devaluation
Reuters - 1 day ago
CARACAS (Reuters) - Shouting "buy, buy, the world is going to die," Venezuelans went on a frantic shopping spree on Saturday following a sharp currency devaluation that is expected to drive up prices. President Hugo Chavez announced a dual system for the fixed rate bolivar Friday night while much of the country was watching a baseball game.
Chavez Devalues Currency Wall Street Journal
Ford looks smart, brings new Focus to Detroit show
Denver Post - 1 day ago
FILE - In this Jan. 7, 2010 file photo, Ford CEO Alan Mulally gives the keynote address at the International Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas. Under Mullaly, Ford has made a series of smart moves compared with its Detroit rivals.
Technology: On the web while on the road UK Telegraph

Ch?vez Devalues Currency Amid Fall in Oil Prices
New York Times - 2 days ago
CARACAS, Venezuela — President announced a sharp devaluation of ’s currency on Friday night, a move that reflects the financial stress faced by his government since the price of , the country’s top export commodity, fell from its peak as a result of the global financial crisis. The action, which Mr. Ch?vez had repeatedly ruled out in the past , came after Venezuela’s economy contracted by 2.9 percent in 2009.
Venezuela's Chavez devalues currency Reuters
Gold Boosted by Weak Jobs Report
TheStreet.com - 3 days ago
NEW YORK () -- recovered Friday after the monthly U.S. showed more job loss. Gold had been down more than $10 an ounce early Friday before the U.S. jobs report but rebounded quickly when the report showed 85,000 jobs fell from the nonfarm payrolls in December.
Metals Stocks: Gold rises after jobs data; poised for weekly gain MarketWatch
Gas heading north again, with $3 on horizon
Denver Post - 3 days ago
While demand is below levels seen in recent years, the price of gas is following the price of oil upward. WASHINGTON — Just what Americans need as they try to dig out from the Great Recession: Gas prices headed back to $3 per gallon.
Winter weather forecast: higher gas prices, heating oil costs Christian Science Monitor

Iraqis say they were forced to take Blackwater settlement
Los Angeles Times - 9 hours ago
Reporting from Baghdad - Several victims of a 2007 shooting involving American private security guards employed by the firm formerly known as Blackwater alleged Sunday that they were coerced into reaching settlements, and they demanded that the Iraqi government intervene to have the agreements nullified. The Iraqis said they were pressured by their own attorneys into accepting what they now believe are inadequate settlements because they were told the company was about to file for bankruptcy, that its chairman was going to be arrested and that the U.S. government was about to confiscate all of the firm's assets.
Victims of Blackwater shooting in Iraq claim coercion in settlements Denver Post
Can we fix the 401(k)?
CNN - 2 days ago
Are you happy with your 401(k) plan? According the Investment Company Institute, the mutual fund trade group, the answer is a resounding yes.
Survey Shows Confidence in 401(k)s Wall Street Journal
Billboard featuring Obama coming down
CNN - 2 days ago
A billboard ad with a photo of President Obama wearing a Weatherproof brand jacket hangs in Times Square January 7. Company spokesman: Ad will be removed "in an expeditious manner"
Outerwear company says it will take down Obama billboard at White House request _ in 2 weeks Chicago Tribune

GOP aides clash over party chairman
CNN - 2 days ago
Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele is under fire from members of his own party. Washington (CNN) -- GOP tempers flared during a routine conference call when House and Senate leadership aides confronted Republican National Committee staffers over recent comments by party chairman Michael Steele.
GOP aides clash over Michael Steele CNN